project_nuzlockedexfandomcom-20200214-history
Tentacool Line/GSC
Tentacool and Tentacruel have a 100% encounter rate on Route 41 in Johto, when Surfing; they can also be encountered on Route 40 either by Surfing or fishing with the Old Rod or Good Rod. They can be found on Routes 12, 13, 19, 20, 21, 26, 27, 32, 34 and 47 as well, and also in New Bark Town, Cherrygrove City, Olivine City, Cianwood City, Pallet Town, Vermilion City, Cinnabar Island, Union Cave, and the Whirl Islands. Tentacool is nearly EVERYWHERE. With the exception of Unova, there is not a single large area of water in any region that is not packed full of jellyfish. Johto is no exception: wherever there are large amounts of water, a Tentacool is essentially guaranteed to be found. While possibly detested for this reason, Tentacool is actually a good Pokémon to have; however not as powerful as it is in other generations, due to lack of physical/special split as well as no access to Ice Beam outside of Crystal, the special bulk and speed this line offers are very remarkable, and its special offensive is not too bad either. Getting access to Surf at a relatively early point in the game is also a bonus. The uncommonness of its sworn enemies - Electric and, even more so, Psychic-types - makes Tentacruel's job of being pretty badass even easier. Important Matchups Johto * Gym #2 - Bugsy (Azalea Town, Bug-type): Metapod and Kakuna are easy to beat, although Kakuna's Poison resistance will prove annoying. Scyther is not Tentacool's cup of tea: its moves are too weak to deal non-negligible damage, and Scyther's Leer and Quick Attack combination can prove deadly in just three or four turns, even without Fury Cutter stacking in damage. Tentacool may use Supersonic and then withdraw, but choosing to do so is risky, due to Supersonic's high miss rate and the fact it would be leaving free Fury Cutter turns open for Scyther. * Rival (Azalea Town): Gastly is not a good enemy for Tentacool, as its double Poison resistance will put even Acid damage to shame. Tentacool can beat Zubat by engaging in a Supersonic face-off, and be advantaged thanks to its higher Speed, but the outcome of it will depend on luck; the damage Zubat deals with direct attacks is negligible, but so is the damage Tentacool deals with its own. Croconaw also outdamages Tentacool with Bite, even if Tentacool already knows Acid; it can barely match up to Quilava, whose strongest move against Water-types is Tackle, and only if Quilava does not spam SmokeScreen. Bayleef may be beaten more easily, once again with Acid, thanks to its weakness to Poison; even then, the average is a 4HKO and Bayleef knows Reflect, which will turn the matchup upside down and expose Tentacool to Razor Leaf crits. * Gym #3 - Whitney (Goldenrod City, Normal-type): Tentacool is at odds with Clefairy, but may manage to win if it knows Blizzard; the move is an average 4HKO, which is stronger than Clefairy's average DoubleSlap (only outdamages upwards of four hits). If Clefairy Metronomes either Selfdestruct or Explosion, however, Tentacool will die; even Hyper Beam will leave a sizeable dent in its health. Taking on Miltank with Tentacool is plain unthinkable, it 2-3HKOs with Stomp and also knows Milk Drink, which would completely foil any of Tentacool's attempts at dealing damage. * Rival (Burned Tower): Surf is thankfully available at this point. It 3HKOs Haunter and 2HKOs Magnemite on average, and can 2-3HKO Zubat; Blizzard is a certain 2HKO against it. Magnemite's ThunderShock is only a 4HKO by comparison, which means Tentacool is completely safe. Quilava and Bayleef are both 2HKOed, the latter by Blizzard; Tentacool can also wear down Croconaw with Surf (which is stronger than Acid), but it will take time, even though a healthy Tentacool will eventually win. * Gym #4 - Morty (Ecruteak City, Ghost-type): Tentacool can 2HKO Gastly, and is near-certain to 2HKO the level 21 Haunter, with Surf. The level 23 Haunter will only be 3HKOed, but its only damaging move is Night Shade, which cannot score critical hits and thus deals perfectly predictable damage. It must, however, avoid Gengar: despite its low Attack, Shadow Ball almost hits 2HKO range and Tentacool is underpowered against it. * Eusine (Cianwood City, Crystal only): Tentacool can beat Drowzee with an average 3-4HKO Surf, providing that Drowzee does not resort to Disable or Hypnosis, as the latter is followed by Dream Eater; Haunter is 2-3HKOed without risks. Electrode knows Thunder, avoid it. * Gym #5 - Chuck (Cianwood City, Fighting-type): Tentacruel should be evolved by now. If that is the case, it should not have any trouble 2-3HKOing Primeape, whose moves are weak against it. The fight against Poliwrath is possible, but difficult and rather long; although DynamicPunch outdamages Tentacruel's Surf, it only sports 5 PP and Poliwrath cannot 5HKO with it. Tentacruel will win if kept healed, particularly from confusion, but it will require time. * Gym #6 - Jasmine (Olivine City, Steel-type): Since Magnemite's Thunderbolt is a 3HKO and Surf 2HKOs, Tentacruel can actually beat both Magnemite, as well as Steelix, which is also 2HKOed by the same move. * Rocket Executive battle #1 (Team Rocket HQ): If Tentacool is unevolved, it scores a 2HKO against Zubat and a 3HKO against Raticate with Surf; alternatively, Zubat can be OHKOed with Blizzard; however, it needs to outspeed Raticate to win against it, as it will otherwise get 3HKOed by Hyper Fang instead. Tentacool also cannot fight Koffing, whose Selfdestruct is highly likely to OHKO. Tentacruel will accomplish the same, but with one less hit each, and can take on Koffing without problems since its Selfdestruct cannot OHKO without a critical hit. * Rocket Executive battle #2 (Team Rocket HQ): Tentacool 3HKOs Arbok with Surf and 2HKOs Gloom and Murkrow with Blizzard. Tentacruel, once again, does the same with respective 2HKOs and OHKOs. * Gym #7 - Pryce (Mahogany Town, Ice-type): Tentacruel's Surf is underpowered against Seel and Dewgong, but it still outdamages their Headbutt, so Tentacruel can win over several turns; Sludge Bomb will make the job simpler. Surf also 2HKOs Piloswine easily. * Rocket Executive battle #3 (Goldenrod Radio Tower): Although Surf is a 2HKO against any of the Koffing, Tentacruel can take no more than one Selfdestruct, and should switch out if it gets hit by one. Avoid Weezing, which is highly likely to OHKO with Explosion. * Rival (Goldenrod Underground): Golbat can be 2HKOed with Blizzard, whereas Surf 2HKOs Magnemite and Haunter as well as 3HKOing Sneasel. Meganium is 2HKOed by either Blizzard or Sludge Bomb; Feraligatr will require an average of four Sludge Bomb hits, but its moves are rather weak. * Rocket Executive battle #4 (Goldenrod Radio Tower): Arbok is 3HKOed by Surf, Vileplume is 2HKOed by Blizzard and Murkrow is 1-2HKOed. * Rocket Executive battle #5 (Goldenrod Radio Tower): Surf OHKOs Houndour and 2HKOs Koffing and Houndoom. * Suicune (Bell Tower, Crystal only): Sludge Bomb outdamages Suicune's BubbleBeam even under Rain Dance, though the Leer and Gust combination will become stronger than Sludge Bomb starting at -2 Defense. If Tentacruel already knows Barrier, however, this will be a non-issue. * Gym #8 - Clair (Blackthorn City, Dragon-type): Blizzard is a clean 2HKO against any of the Dragonair. Their Thunder Wave will only become annoying if Blizzard keeps missing repeatedly, and healing paralysis is still an option; the third Dragonair can be KOed by Blizzard and Sludge Bomb as well, if the Blizzard PP have run out. Tentacruel can also attempt to fight Kingdra, as it outspeeds and two Sludge Bombs deal more damage than one Hyper Beam; Hyper Beam itself is a 3HKO, but not far from 2HKO range. Tentacruel's Barrier will greatly improve its survivability and capability to take Hyper Beams as it proceeds to wear down Kingdra with Sludge Bomb. * Rival (Victory Road): Surf maintains its capability to 2HKO Haunter and Magneton, Blizzard still 2HKOs Golbat, and Sludge Bomb is highly likely to 2HKO Sneasel and guaranteed to 2HKO the new entry, Kadabra, whose Psybeam is only a 3-4HKO. Meganium can be 2HKOed with Blizzard or Sludge Bomb, Typhlosion with Surf; Feraligatr is an average 4HKO, but once again, its moves will only do a fraction of that damage to Tentacruel. * Elite Four Will (Indigo Plateau, Psychic-type): Each Xatu can be beaten by using Blizzard once, then finishing it off with Surf; their Psychic only 3HKOs Tentacruel. Sludge Bomb can also 2HKO Exeggutor and Jynx, whose Psychic is also a 3HKO. Tentacruel should not attempt to fight Slowbro, which can set up Curse and/or Amnesia against it and eventually score the kill with Psychic. * Elite Four Koga (Indigo Plateau, Poison-type): Surf 2HKOs Ariados, and is also highly likely to 2HKO Venomoth, whose Psychic is relatively weak. Muk is averagely 3-4HKOed, which leaves room for it to use Minimize, but Tentacruel takes little damage from Sludge Bomb and cannot be poisoned by Toxic, so only patience is needed to win the matchup. Crobat can be 2HKOed with Blizzard after getting past Double Team, with the possible helping of an X Accuracy; Forretress is technically 2HKOable with Surf too, but its Explosion carries a relatively high risk of OHKOing Tentacruel in return, so it should preferably be left to a Pokémon with proper coverage and/or physical bulk. Alternatively, Tentacruel can set up Barriers against the less threatening Pokémon Koga has - potentially Ariados or Muk - and sweep Forretress afterwards, providing critical hits do not occur. * Elite Four Bruno (Indigo Plateau, Fighting-type): Surf scores a 3HKO against Hitmontop and Hitmonchan, neither of which is dangerous to Tentacruel; Hitmontop's Dig is easily avoidable by switching in and out as needed, and Hitmonchan's ThunderPunch is laughable, coming off Hitmonchan's very poor Special Attack. Hitmonlee is not an issue either, and can be 2HKOed by Sludge Bomb; Swagger is the only move that may get in the way of Tentacruel sweeping, and that can be fixed by having Tentacruel hold a Bitter Berry. Tentacruel can also 3-4HKO Machamp, taking relatively little damage from Cross Chop, thanks to its Fighting resistance. * Elite Four Karen (Indigo Plateau, Dark-type): Umbreon's Sand-Attack is the most "threatening" move for Tentacruel, as it may deplete its PP, together with Umbreon's bulk being very high. An X Accuracy, however, will easily allow Tentacruel to eventually KO Umbreon. Vileplume is 2HKOed by Blizzard, whereas Murkrow is 1-2HKOed; Surf can 2HKO Houndoom. Gengar is 2-3HKOed on average, but Tentacruel should not fight it unless it can outspeed, because Gengar's Destiny Bond is otherwise very likely to take Tentacruel down with it. * Champion Lance (Indigo Plateau, Flying-type): Gyarados may be weakened with Sludge Bomb, an average 3HKO, but Tentacruel should be wary of not cutting its health down too low, otherwise Gyarados' Flail will deal preposterous damage. Surf 2HKOs both Charizard and Aerodactyl without problems. Blizzard is a 1-2HKO against all three of the Dragonite; one of the level 47 ones knows Thunder, however, which Tentacruel should be wary of below half health, as it can kill. At any rate, Thunder is an average 3HKO, so a healthy Tentacruel will still win. Kanto From this point onwards, you can fight the gyms in any order, though you will need to retrieve the Machine Parts from the Cerulean City gym before you have access to the earlier portion of Kanto. Feel free to anticipate or postpone any battles as needed. * Gym #9 - Brock (Pewter City, Rock-type): Surf wrecks Graveler, Onix and Rhyhorn. Omastar and Kabutops are 1-2HKOed by Giga Drain, but can also be 2-3HKOed with Surf. * Rival (Mt. Moon, optional): Half of this team can be 2HKOed: Sneasel with Sludge Bomb, Golbat with Blizzard, and Magneton with Surf. Gengar is a 2-3HKO, though the power of Surf makes Mean Look and Curse a non-threatening combination, as it would kill Gengar. A Tentacruel in the early 50s can also 2HKO Alakazam with Sludge Bomb; Alakazam's Psychic is only a 3HKO on average, highly unlikely to 2HKO. Tentacruel's respective STABs also 2HKO Typhlosion and Meganium. If Tentacruel knows Giga Drain, it can 3HKO Feraligatr with it; if not, Sludge Bomb still does the trick. * Gym #10 - Misty (Cerulean City, Water-type): Tentacruel can 3HKO Golduck with Sludge Bomb despite its Psychic, which does not deal much damage. It can beat Quagsire as well, but only with Giga Drain, which 2HKOs; Quagsire's Earthquake is also a 2HKO, but Quagsire is slower. Tentacruel also easily wins against Lapras, as it resists both of its STABs; Sludge Bomb is an average 4HKO, however, and Tentacruel will need to switch out and back in if Lapras uses Perish Song before Tentacruel can score the kill. Sludge Bomb and Giga Drain are both 3HKOs against Starmie, too, which is safe to fight as it lacks Psychic STAB altogether. * Gym #11 - Lt. Surge (Vermilion City, Electric-type): Raichu and Electabuzz have Thunder as their strongest STAB, which can 2HKO Tentacruel before it manages to do the same with Surf; Magneton, instead, can be 2HKOed safely. Surf 2HKOs the two Electrode, as well, but Tentacruel can only take one Explosion, and must switch out against the second Electrode if the first one uses the move. * Gym #12 - Erika (Celadon City, Grass-type): Tentacruel wrecks this team with Ice coverage. Blizzard OHKOs Tangela and Jumpluff and 2HKOs Victreebel and Bellossom; Ice Beam scores 2HKOs all across the board, with the exception of Bellossom, which is 3HKOed. * Gym #13 - Janine (Fuchsia City, Poison-type): Surf 2HKOs all of Janine's team; Crobat is an OHKO chance with Blizzard, but not Ice Beam. The two Weezing, however, have Explosion, and Tentacruel can take one, but not two; after the first, if used, it will need to heal or switch out. * Gym #14 - Sabrina (Saffron City, Psychic-type): Espeon and Alakazam both 2HKO Tentacruel with Psychic, but Mr. Mime only 3HKOs and is slow, so it can be 3HKOed with Sludge Bomb. * Gym #15 - Blaine (Seafoam Islands, Fire-type): Surf is an OHKO against Magcargo and a 2HKO against Magmar, regardless of whether Magmar puts up Sunny Day or not. Rapidash is normally 2HKOed, but only 3-4HKOed if Sunny Day is up; its Fire Blast, at any rate, cannot manage to even 4HKO, so Tentacruel still wins. * Gym #16 - Blue (Viridian City): Pidgeot is 2HKOed by Blizzard, or 3HKOed by Ice Beam; same for Exeggutor, which knows no Psychic moves and thus cannot defeat Tentacruel. Surf OHKOs Rhydon and 2HKOs Arcanine. Neither Gyarados nor Alakazam are beatable, as they respectively outpower Tentacruel with their Hyper Beam and Psychic. * Rival (Indigo Plateau, optional): Sneasel and Magneton are still 2-3HKOed by Sludge Bomb and Surf respectively, depending on Tentacruel's level and stats; if the first Surf deals less than half to Magneton, Tentacruel must switch out, or it will get killed by Magneton's second Thunder. Crobat is now evolved, but still 2HKOed by Blizzard, or 3HKOed by Ice Beam, once Tentacruel gets past the possible Confuse Ray shenanigans. Gengar is still 2-3HKOed by Surf, but Alakazam must now be avoided, as its Psychic is highly likely to 2HKO and Sludge Bomb cannot 2HKO for certain. Surf 2HKOs Typhlosion and Sludge Bomb 2-3HKOs Meganium, as does Blizzard; Feraligatr can be worn down with Giga Drain or, in absence of that, Sludge Bomb. * Red (Mt. Silver): Pikachu can be 2HKOed with Surf, as its Thunder is a 2HKO at best; it cannot win against Espeon, however, which is likely to 2HKO with Psychic, something Tentacruel cannot do with any of its moves. Blizzard is a 2-3HKO against Venusaur, while Ice Beam always 3HKOs; Venusaur's SolarBeam is a 3-4HKO by comparison, and requires one Sunny Day turn to set up. If Venusaur sets up Sunny Day, it will cut the normal 2HKO against Charizard down to a 3-4HKO, but Charizard cannot accomplish any better, either, so Tentacruel can win against it regardless of weather conditions. Sludge Bomb takes several turns to KO Blastoise, as does Giga Drain, but Tentacruel also resists all of Blastoise's damaging moves, so it can once again come out victorious, particularly if Giga Drain recovery is supporting it. Lastly, a combination of Barrier and Sludge Bomb is best against Snorlax: one Barrier use will allow Tentacruel to outdamage Body Slam with Sludge Bomb, barring critical hits, and using a physical move will render Snorlax's Amnesia useless. Still, Sludge Bomb is an average 4-5HKO and Snorlax knows Rest, so the battle will keep Tentacruel occupied for long and likely deplete its PP multiple times. Moves At its lowest possible level, Tentacool knows only Poison Sting, Supersonic and Constrict. It does not get much in the way of level-up moves; at level 19, it learns Acid, which is not that great but not that bad either, while BubbleBeam at level 25 is completely overshadowed by Surf, which becomes available at around the same time. Likewise, Wrap, at level 30, is completely useless. The possibly only useful move the line learns is Barrier, which it gets at level 38 as Tentacruel; this compensates for Tentacool's substantial lack of physical bulk in the best possible way. The last moves are not that interesting; Screech, at level 47, is something Tentacruel will basically never make use of, and Hydro Pump at level 55 comes kind of late, but can work as a replacement for Surf if a higher power move is needed. The good TM options mostly boil down to Blizzard and Giga Drain. Both of them offer Tentacruel a wider movepool to hit enemies with, and Giga Drain in particular will help it against fellow Water-types, as well as Quagsire. Sludge Bomb is actually also surprisingly good, as it works off a decent base Attack, which is not much lower than Tentacruel's Special Attack. Rain Dance is an option for a momentary Water power-up, while Toxic works for support-oriented sets or in absence of better options. Crystal players should opt for the tutored move Ice Beam over Blizzard, for greater accuracy. Recommended moveset: Surf, Blizzard and Silver / Ice Beam Crystal, Sludge Bomb, Barrier / Giga Drain Recommended Teammates * Ground-types: Electric-types are uncommon in Johto, but stray Thunderbolts can get a wounded Tentacruel with or without STAB. Good Ground-types should be used as Electric support; it is even better if they have good physical Defense. ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Golem, Sandslash, Quagsire, Steelix, Piloswine, Donphan, Rhydon * Dark- or Steel-types: Psychic coverage can go two ways, offensive and defensive. Obtaining good offensive coverage is difficult, due to the scarcity of Dark-types; Steel-types, however, can provide an almost equally valid answer. ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Steelix, Forretress, Scizor, Umbreon, Skarmory, Houndoom * Physical tanks: While Barrier somewhat compensates for Tentacruel's low physical bulk, the move is learned relatively late during the adventure, and even Barrier boosts cannot shield Tentacruel from critical hits. It is advised to have a physical tank on the team, whether Tentacruel is running Barrier or not. ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Sandslash, Quagsire, Steelix, Forretress, Umbreon, Donphan Other Tentacool's stats Tentacruel's stats * At what point in the game should I be evolved? Evolving Tentacool before fighting Chuck is the best option. Most players will catch it before reaching Cianwood City, at any rate. * How good is the Tentacool line in a Nuzlocke? As expected from one of the most popular and common nuzlocke Pokémon ever, it is very good. Johto helps its case even more, because there are no type specialists with teams that Tentacruel is weak against until Kanto, and the whole Kanto part is fairly easy. It has a nice movepool for this generation, a stat spread that will help it come out of most difficult situations victorious, and is generally solid and reliable throughout. * Weaknesses: Ground, Electric, Psychic * Resistances: Fighting, Poison, Bug, Steel, Fire, Water, Ice * Immunities: None * Neutralities: Normal, Flying, Rock, Ghost, Grass, Dragon, Dark Category:Gold/Silver/Crystal Category:List of Evolutionary Lines with Completed Analyses